CoA member Guha quits with body yet to resolve key issues
Cricket historian Ramchandra Guha’s sudden resignation on Thursday from the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA) may have been prompted by many issues.
Guha was one of four members appointed by the Supreme Court in January to implement the Lodha Committee reforms in the BCCI. The court will hear his plea on July 14 to decide whether to relieve him of his duties.
The prime reason for Guha’s stepping down could be the CoA not making any headway in achieving its objectives. When the COA was formed, its chief Vinod Rai had said it would take about six months to implement the reforms. However, the CoA is into its sixth month, but it has not had any success as far as implementing the reforms are concerned. The BCCI and state associations are still stuck on their objections over the age criteria, one-state one-vote, tenure and cooling period between two terms. It is speculated that Guha’s suggestions have often not been heeded to. There may also be a case of his suggestions taking too long to be implemented.
The CoA’s main role was to oversee implementation of the Lodha reforms. However, that seems to have taken a backseat as the CoA is repeatedly getting sucked into issues which are beyond its mandate. They have been involved in issues like the ICC-BCCI tussle over financial and governance model, players’ remuneration (domestic and international). The most contentious issue is the ongoing Virat Kohli-Anil Kumble saga. Clearly, the CoA’s focus has been diverted from its main task.